Interview by: Chandler Crump
Produced by: Daniella Bernal
Photography by: Chandler Crump
Stylist: Raz Martinez
Makeup by: Joshua Hilario
Photo Assistants: Lexi Clark, Joseph Valencia
Stylist Assistant: Joyce Onuorah
Location: Sundae Studios, NY
Special Thanks: Anna Keating
CHANDLER CRUMP (CC): How are you?
GRACE DUAH (GD): Good. How are you?
CC: I'm good! Let me close the window really quickly. I'm not sure if you can hear any beeping.
GD: I mean, we're all in New York and yeah, I feel like the beeping is part of the culture.
CC: Everyone's fighting demons here.
GD: If that's like the price we pay amongst all the other various, various prices we are paying.
CC: Yes. And then just like the trauma of seeing dead rats everywhere.
GD: Right.
CC: So you're based in Brooklyn? Did you grow up in New York?
GD: No- I grew up in Virginia. I moved to New York in 2016 because I went to Pace University. So I've been living here since I was 18, and then I graduated from Pace in 2020. Then it was pandemic, so I went home for like six, seven months or so.
I got a marketing job at Horizon Media for their BET team. And so then I moved back to New York on those very minimal wages.I just remember my parents saying I cannot move to the city for this salary. And I was like, “Or can I?”
I just had this mindset of “ It's my luck that is going to strike if I put myself in [this] place.” Luck is a skill. You have to have the skill of placing yourself in positions to get lucky. And so I was like, I'm not going to get lucky here in Northern Virginia.
CC: Same with San Francisco, where I’m from.
GD: There's no industry. How am I going to be an actor if I live in Fairfax, Virginia? Not to say people don't do it, especially now in the land of self-tape, but it's more-so it was the pandemic. My first industry job is not going to be me acting on set. So if I want to be in the industry, I have to be working industry jobs where I'm physically on set.They're not going to give me that job when I'm in Northern Virginia, when I need to be in New York, you know?
CC:Exactly. Yeah.
GD: So that's why I really pushed and then I moved to New York. And then I was at that job for about six months when I got a call from The Late Show.
CC: Was it an internship or paid job?
GD: Well, thankfully, The Late Show internship is paid.
CC: That's good.
GD: I was a Senior [in college] during the Fall of 2019. In the Spring of 2020 my [acting] Showcase was canceled, and my showcase teacher felt bad.
CC: So right before the pandemic!
GD: One of the people that she brought in was this big casting director who cast all of CW and he was her friend. My showcase teacher used to be a casting director at Fox. For me, I've always kind of viewed my career in the long-term way.
CC: Where there's a will, there's a way as well, right?
GD: So during the pandemic, as long as I survived it, I will be in the industry. So the Casting Director may not have been able to help me back then, but they could help me in the future. That’s how I approached it.
CC: The power of networking.
GD: In February of 2021, he emailed me and said he had an audition for me. I didn’t have a team, but I sent him a tape and he told me I was penned for callbacks but I needed an agent.
CC: Wow!
GD: He said to give him the weekend. The weekend passed on Monday. Literally my first day, at The Late show...
I signed with my first agency at the end of that week.
CC: How do you navigate contracts, especially for the first time?
GD: I mean, I was very laid back.I was pinned, [which] basically means, “If we were to go for you, you need someone to be able to negotiate immediately”. The project [ended] up not going forward, which is fine, but now I had an agency. At the time I had no credit, I had no nothing.
Duah in Moschino. Shoes by Frankie 4 Footwear. Jewelry by NOTTE.
CC: I’m familiar with your work as Shan in HBO’s Gossip Girl reboot and our mutual friend, but in terms of booking that role, how did your agency at the time bring you the opportunity? How did you prepare?
GD: So if by that time, I was somewhere between my 70th and 80th self tape that I sent in for a project. So within six months I'd sent in about 70 to 80 self tapes when I got Gossip Girl. So Gossip Girl was just like another self tape that I was doing.
CC: Did you know it was Gossip Girl?
GD: I didn't know. So initially, the first audition, Shan was a “Major Recurrence", which to me indicates that's she gets two episodes. But in those two episodes she's super fun. And at that point, I had a system because I'm working a 14 hour job Monday through Friday, right?
CC: The Late Show. Wow.
GD: I like to keep my cards to my chest, always.
At the time, Grace was working full time at “The Late Show” in 2021.
GD: I'm a full time PA at The Late Show; when I applied for the job, they vaguely knew I was actor, but they knew that my degree was in acting. They had asked me if I’m still acting. But, I keep my cards close to the chest because it's actually very difficult to get a job period [in the industry because] you work two months and then you have to get a new one but at The Late Show, you're going to be there for years.
CC: It's giving The Morning Show energy.
GD: You get hired at The Late Show, you have a steady job. So it's really difficult to get those jobs if they think you're about to leave.
CC: Yeah.
GD: So no one knew I was actively auditioning. I also didn't want them to think that they were going to get less of a work ethic from me.
CC: It's like moving in silence, too. Especially pursuing a dream craft as well as having that day job in the same industry. I think there's almost a “You should be lucky to be here” mindset in the industry. But then also you have to hustle for the dream job, so you have keep those two lives separate almost in a way.
GD: Yeah. And for me, it was a respect thing. What I have going on over there, that's what I have going on. I don't want [my day job] to think I'm here and I'm not 100% here with you.
I remember I had two of my interns, Patrick and Phiroze. I was PA’ing for quite a few departments. I got the call from my agent telling me “Hey, do you remember your Gossip Girl audition?” And truthfully, the answer was “No”, and not even in any type of way, just because you do 80 auditions.
CC: Also there’s no point in ruminating on a potential job because then it might be disappointing if you don't get.
GD: As an actor, you're up against rejection on a level [similar to applying to] 400 jobs on LinkedIn and not getting anything back. Like, that's how it is as an actor. But the difference is once you do get that job on LinkedIn, you're done. Even after you book [an acting] job, you still have to be auditioning because 95% of that time, that job is going away.
I got that call and they're like, “They really like you. They want you to do a callback” I was like, “Okay”. I got a different call another week, and they were like, “So actually they want to make this character a series regular for Season Two”, which changed things.
CC: Yeah.
GD: A series regular means like.
CC: You're in it, like you're there.
GD:I have a motto [where] I don't get excited until I sign a contract because this industry is never guaranteed… it's like I always say, every actor is in a toxic relationship with the industry where the industry is an anxious avoidant boyfriend saying “Let’s wait”.
.
.
.
CC: In Virginia, was your socioeconomic status similar to Shan's?
GD: It was very much not. My family's from Ghana.My parents immigrated here right before I was born. And my parents…I was really blessed that they came here. And within five years, they did really well. They're both nurses. And so we were like a solid middle class; we were laid back, steady, happy, middle class and middle class in this country, it means whatever, but middle class for two village kids from Ghana is humongous.
And then the housing crisis hit. We lost our home, we lost everything. And so it was like we were still middle class, scraping [by].
CC: Middle class hasn’t been the same since 2008.
GD: When I said I wanted to be an actor, [my parents said to go for it]. But if I ever came asking for [money], [they] don't have that: “We don't know anything about this industry. We don't know anyone in this industry. We have no ability to support you, to give you a leg up. We don't have any means of doing so. We will support you-” like when the strike happened and I [had] seven months of no income.
CC: Like there's no nepotism involved..
GD: I remember I told my dad “I don't need you to do any[thing]... I will figure it out on my own”, because to be fair, I have all the odds stacked against me. I am a dark skinned Black girl in an industry that hates dark skinned Black girls and I come from nothing, and I come from nobody in this industry.
CC: For people of color, we don’t get a pass to be “untalented”. We have to shine brighter than everyone else in the room, especially in film and on the director/writer side. There are people who are born into the industry and give little effort to their craft and on the other side of it. There's no way that I can not give my all to my craft.
In terms of preparing for the role of Shan, with that contrast between her background and yours, where did you find similarities between the two?
GD: I always felt that Shan is me but if I grew up without inhibitions, without anxiety, without the limitations; if I really got to grow up free and clear… For me it was just fun because I [got] to do all these things that I would never do. It was really lovely for my first-ever role outside of acting school. It was nice to start with a character that I felt I saw so many elements of myself [in] and then expand from that place because then it helps you build confidence in yourself.
It's so important to have so much confidence in yourself. After playing Shan, I kind of adopted a motto of “What are you going to do, beat my ass?” Because I feel like that's kind of how she approaches life. It’s helped me find bravery in my own life to continue going, the bravery to pivot, the bravery to restart. Because, that's essentially kind of what happened, [spending] four years in acting school, grinding, [and] being told to become a “series regular”.
[After the strike], playing Shan has given me the bravery to get up and continue to be motivated and be creative and be inspired and see the positives of this industry because I definitely think the strike for a lot of actors, myself included, was hard for so many reasons.
Duah in Versace.
CC: Was there a show or film that was an “Aha!” moment that solidified your dream to become an actor?
GD: Living Single. It was Erika Alexander’s performance as Maxine. My parents at the time couldn't afford cable and I loved watching TV. And I just remember watching Living Single with like zero concept. I'm like six, seven years old [with] no real concept of the [story]. But every time Erika Alexander came on screen, my whole face would light up because I was like, “She looks like me”. Quite frankly, nobody in That’s So Raven looked like me. Nobody in the Proud Family looked like me except Dijonay. Nobody. You know what I mean? I watch the show and I was like, “Y'all don't look like me.”
CC: As a kid, you can tell when they only cast even just half-white half-Black actors
GD: Yeah. And that was the thing. For me, Living Single stood out because I was like, “She has the same braids I get made fun of for having in school. And she who she is.” And I look and she's a lawyer and she's a cool, funny person and she's so smart…
CC: There's the tokenism in the early aughts of Black [people] – their storylines don't ever align with the show's engine and they're never fully fleshed out.
GD: Exactly. And so watching Living Single….it's like I knew the industry wasn't made for Black people and that Black people,we were carving our own spaces out, and so I remember that was really interesting to me. And I love that. I loved all of the nineties Black films and Black television [such as] Kenan & Kel, Fresh Prince, Family Matters. We're crafting our own section.
Duah in Versace
CC: What would you say is the logline to your craft?
GD: A young Black woman audaciously navigating an industry she knows was not built for her.
It's really, really, really, really, really, really, really important for [Black creatives] to exist and to have those faces everywhere because those are the faces that can make more opportunities happen. Yeah, that's how you can create ten years of like television that felt like a renaissance of Black film because you have Black showrunners, we have Black people behind the scenes….
[Acting] puts me in a place where I have access so I'm to use that access to create access for other people. You follow the stories of Issa Rae and what Quinta Brunson has been able to do and like and how all these Black creatives have been able to use their platform…
.
.
.
CC: What does your process look like when it comes to unlocking your emotions for a self-tape? How has your craft evolved over the years?
GD: Before 2020, I viewed self tapes as “What can I do to make you like me?” And I think I now view self tapes as “What can I do to make me like myself?” The only taste I know is my own at the end, the only one I can control is my own: what can I do to make sure that I am at peace and content with myself by the end of it? Because when the dust is clear, the only thing you have is yourself.
You have to like yourself. You have to be fulfilled by yourself. You have to feel grounded in yourself, and you have to know thyself so well that you can self tape from your own sense of self, your own sense of identity, your own tastes… This new year, when I send out a self tape, it's coming from a place of “Hey, this is my version. That's not your version? Okay.”
There's no need for me to now change who I am and who my version is. Not every single character I'm playing [has my very reflection], but every single character I [play] with my perception of that character…
CC: Coming from you, it's genuine to see your experiences and your own emotions to inform the character.
GD: And I find that's like all can do right. As an actor, because there's so much rejection involved-
CC: -Putting up those boundaries.
GD: Those emotional boundaries. And so every character I approach it from my understanding. I might ask for clarifying notes if I get it completely wrong. What's wonderful is one thing I learned from Gossip Girl, if they really want you and you get it completely wrong, they will just call you and tell you to fix it.
.
.
.
CC: What is your dream role?
GD: Right now, because it’s one of my favorite books, the character of Zélie in Children of Blood and Bone. It’s an excellent book
For me, growing up a West African girl in America, I remember my elementary school in Virginia made me take speech classes because I had such a strong West African accent. They didn't think I was actually born in America.
CC: They really said “assimilate”.
GD: Yeah. So I remember growing up, I related so much to Harry Potter because I wish I just had magical powers to make all of this go away. Children of Blood and Bone gives us young West African girls who are so overlooked [a voice], and [the novel] talks about so many topics that I really struggled with my entire identity as a Black woman, as a Ghanaian woman….
CC: I'm manifesting for you.
GD: I'm manifesting as well. But also I think for me, I was a theater actor growing up. I didn't think I was actually going to do TV until college. So because of that, I don't have a mindset of “This genre” or “This role” or film versus television. The more further away the character is from you, the more exciting it is, right? That's what makes us theater kids so annoying: you actually can't present anything to us that we're not like, “Let's do it.”
CC: Versatility is a skill in itself.
GD: [Regarding the amount of self-tapes to booked roles], the game is harder, the numbers are harder, there's more perseverance to acquire, there's more audacity that you have to have within yourself.
CC: But there's more practice of the craft, too.
GD: You have to have a lot of audacity to be told ‘No’ 300 times and still send in another tape; the audacity that's required to be a working actor.
CC: You logically have to be passionate [hearing those numbers]. I'm so incredibly impressed. And I don't think people realize when people say they're an actor and they say “Have I seen you on screen?” it's like “I'm on multiple screens.”
GD: Every day. I'm acting all the time. So many times people will ask “So are you still auditioning?” And I always laugh anytime someone says that to me because I'm like, “Yeah, a little bit.”
When I booked Shan, I was still auditioning about five times a week. Even when I was on set. The auditioning aspect of [acting] is actually the hardest, the most draining, the most physically and emotionally debilitating part of this process. [One must figure] out a way to still think you're wonderful and not even from an egotistical place, but survival.
Duah in Alberta Ferretti.
CC: Do you want to get to a point where there are no more self-tapes? GD: From a purely time consuming position ,yeah. I personally love auditioning, [specifically] the actual act of putting the camera up in the room and performing. I’m in Glee-mode, like back in middle school. I would only want the audition side of it to go away when I'm at the point when I'm acting so consistently that I don't need to subsidize that with auditioning.
.
.
.
CC: Has your North Star changed over the years in terms of moral principles, a guiding career goal or position that drives you forward, especially during the audition process?
GD: I think there were a couple things. I was raised by very, very God fearing religious parents. And I think that the Spirit and the faith that they raised me to have has helped me so much in moments. A big one too is embracing all my identifiers like I am: my Blackness [is] the golden battery that charges my soul. I never want to be separated from my Blackness or feel like I was removed from it.
What it means to be a Black woman in this world has supercharged me. There are moments when I feel weighed down by it, but when I'm looking for a North Star, when I'm looking for the strength of my ancestors and all, the people in my lineage who came before me, I know. I carry so much strength not from within me because I always say I am not God's strongest soldier. But what I do have, I feel like I have God’s strongest military behind me;I have my family, my support system, my friends.
And I always remind myself that I'm not in it alone. And I'm even in terms of those who have passed on, I know they're looking down on me. When I filmed Episode Eight (of Gossip Girl), in the middle of it, my grandma passed away last year.I found out 10 minutes before going to set.
CC: Oh my gosh…
GD: I'm named after my grandma. We are very, very close. It was so, so devastating. And then I had to film. When [they would] call cut, Whitney would be in the back with tissues and I would go back to crying. And then go back to get my makeup done.
CC: My goodness.
GD: [My grandmother] watched my middle school musicals, but [she didn’t] speak English so she didn't know what was going on. So she laughed at the sad parts and cheered at the worst moment.
CC: It's just a vibe.
GD: I am reminded that I carry so so much support and strength. My grandmother was right there with me. She was so mischievous and would do absolutely everything [in that episode]. And she was right there with me, pushing me forward.
Duah in Moschino. Shoes by Frankie 4 Footwear. Jewelry by NOTTE.
CC: Do you want a legacy? In other words, do you have ideal footprints that you want to leave in the industry?
GD: I think Yes. One of my middle names [out of four] means “God’s Gift”. I do feel like I was given a gift that I am not leaving until everybody has experienced it. And that’s part of the reason [I] keep going. That’s part of the excitement.
There are so many issues that matter so much to me and there's so many people's voices who are being overlooked. I will never forget once when I went home, and by home, I mean to Ghana,I was talking to my cousin and we were talking about going to an airport and he was like, “What's a plane like?”... Because he'd never seen one in person. And I remember from that moment, I was like, one day I'm going to be able to get to the point where not only will you know what a plane looks like, I will benefit the lives of all my fellow Ghanians who are here.
.
.
.
CC: If you could be on any show, current or old, what would you be on and why?
GD: I have to be on Living Single. And they'd have to let me be Maxine's little sister. I owe everything to that show's existence. I would not be here for if it wasn't for those four women. Also, Psych. And Phineas and Ferb. Spongebob would be a nice little addition. But definitely the first three.
.
.
.
CC: If you had unlimited funding, how would you use it?
GD: From a personal level, immediately [clear] all debt of anybody with the Duah last name. And honestly, I would go home and I would fix the roads in my dad's hometown village and my mom's hometown.
From a creative [level] I just shot a proof of concept for this one film called The Off Brands. I would immediately use the funding to make the feature.
CC: Greenlit, let's go.
.
.
.
CC: What is your clothing for the craft?
GD: I have this one plaid button down that has a sherpa lining. I wear it anytime I have to play your everyday kind of rough girl. I have this gorgeous mustard coat to play a grown woman. This denim jacket with a gray hoodie anytime I’m supposed to be a teenager. Those three, and then I like to match my wig to the character’s description.
.
.
.
CC: Des vêtements avec vérité? Favorite pieces you’re enjoying right now?
GD: For sentimental reasons, my Vivienne Westwood teddybear chain. On my 25th birthday, Whitney, who plays my best friend in the show and is my best friend in real life, gifted me [the chain]. I wear this all the time and everytime I do, I think of our friendship and how blessed I am to call her a sister. She protected me in the ways that she could and I would be far worse emotionally if she wasn’t guiding me through the trials and tribulations of being on a TV show.
And, my brown distressed leather coat!